Focus - March 2015

This article was published in February 2015. Please see News & Campaigns for more recent information.

McCann Homes & DLP Planning

On the 21st January DLP Planning and McCann homes held a Public Exhibition to share their proposed plans for land in the village of Edlesborough. The exhibition was well attended and Parishioners had the opportunity to speak to both the planners and members of the Parish Council. Many Parishioners took the time to complete a questionnaire for the Parish Council; what follows is an analysis of Public Consultation Questionnaires:

A total of 167 questionnaires were returned relating to the McCann proposal to build 75 houses on land off the High Street opposite the School. 7 (4%) supported the proposal, 148 (89%) opposed it and 12 (7%) were undecided.

The adjusted total after allowing for questionnaires in joint names and eliminating those from out of Parish residents or that were anonymous was 147 of which 6 (4%) were in support, 128 (87%) opposed and 13 (9%) were undecided.

The most frequent comments related to the number of new houses proposed and the consequential effect on the local infrastructure and services.

The capacity of the local school and GP surgery to cope with the additional demand, the worsening of the existing sewerage and drainage problems and the additional traffic congestion/parking problems were the predominant concerns. Those same concerns were also expressed by some of those that were undecided or expressed support for the proposed development.

A smaller but still significant number of people expressed concern about the loss of AAL green space. A significant number of residents were also concerned that a single development of this size would adversely affect the character of the village.

Support

Oppose

Undecided

Totals

Parish residents – single name

6

120

9

Parish residents – joint(2) names

4

2

Anonymous

7

1

Out of Parish residents (predominantly Eaton Bray residents)

1

17

Totals

7 (4%)

148 (89%)

12 (7%)

167

Adjusted Totals

6 (4%)

128 (87%)

13 (9%)

147

The Budget and Precept

At the January Parish Council meeting Councillors agreed to the Budget for 2015/16. As a result of this budget the Parish Council agreed a Precept of £88,770.00 together with the grant of £1,230.00 giving a total Precept of £90,000.00 which has now been formally forwarded to AVDC.

Communication

The Parish Council have asked the EDaN Steering Group to initiate an update to the Parish Plan. Parishioners will be consulted on a range of issues and will be invited to propose future projects.

All parishioners are welcome to attend the monthly meetings and are invited to ask questions, make suggestions and raise issues during the Open Forum at the start of the meeting.

Other ways of communicating with the Councillors are by telephoning or emailing the Parish Clerk or by using the Parish Council Facebook page to raise issues or ask questions. The Parish Council also posts information on to the Facebook page facebook.com/EDANParishCouncil

New Pavilion

Councillors have now agreed to the plans for the New Pavilion on Edlesborough Green and the architect has been instructed to apply for planning permission.

Cow Lane development

The Parish Council submitted a further objection to this development as a result of a change to the site layout. This may be viewed on the AVDC Planning website under the application number 14/01261/APP dated 20 Jan 2015.

Parking on white lines

The Parish Council will continue with its efforts to remind all parishioners not to park on white lines. These have been placed in key locations in Edlesborough to aid the safety of pedestrians, road users and in some places to aid people with wheelchairs or motorised scooters.

Edlesborough Parish Council Meeting

This next meeting will be held at Edlesborough Memorial Hall on Thursday 19th March 2015, commencing at 7:30pm. Minutes of previous meetings can be found on the website www.edlesborough-pc.gov.uk